NCAA Basketball Power Rankings: Illinois rises, Dayton keeps impressing

Florida State only played one game during this past week and it struggled to put away Notre Dame at home. The Seminoles were barely able to escape that contest with a victory as their defensive surrendered 84 points, the most of any game all season. With that said, though, Florida State was able to take the victory and move its winning streak to 10 games. The team sits at 17-2 (7-1 ACC) on the season and still belongs in the Top 10 nationally.

Wyatt Wilkes was perhaps the most important contributor for Florida State in the victory of this week. The 6-foot-8 sophomore played sparingly during the first 16 games of the season (<10 mpg) but put together his best performance against the Fighting Irish. He chipped in a team-high 19 points in his season-high 19 minutes behind 5-for-6 shooting from 3-point range. The Seminoles likely would not have walked away victorious without his contributions off the bench.

That is, though, a staple of Coach Hamilton’s system. Florida State boasts a ton of depth and is never afraid to use it. The Seminoles rank 36th in the nation in bench minutes percentage and any reserve can step up on any given night. It was Wilkes against Notre Dame but it could be someone else in the next close game that Florida State plays.

With back-to-back road games against Virginia and Virginia Tech in the coming week, that next close game could arrive sooner rather than later.